Grain-door for cars.



No. 856,663. PATENTED JUNE 11, 1907. W. 0. N. SMITH & B. ROADIFER. GRAIN DOOR FOR (JARS.

APPLIOATION FILED 001222, 1906.

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,used inside and in connection with the ordi- UNrrnn STATES PATENT orrron.

WILLIAM C. N. SMITH, OF LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, AND ERAST' US ROADIFER,

- OF LOGAN, IOIVA.

GRAIN-DOOR FOR CARS- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 11, 1907.

Application filed October 22,1906. Serial No. 340,039-

T 0 all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, WILLIAM C. N. SMITH, residing in Lincoln, in the county of Lancaster and State of Nebraska, and ERAS- TUs ROADIFER, residing in Logan, in the county of Harrison and State of Iowa, have jointly invented certain'new and useful Improvements in Grain Doors for Cars, of which the following is a specification, sulficiently clear to enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to grain doors for cars. Its object is :-1. The production of grain doors which will prevent the loss of grain through car doors in shipping. 2. The production of grain tight doors which may be nary car door. 3. The production of grain doors which will swing back against the car sides, out of the way, on the outside and also on the inside of the car. 4. The production of grain doors which will swing open and back against the outside of the car or the outside car door without hindrance from obstructions such as fixed pulleys, nineteen inches from the sides of the car, on elevator platforms. 5. The production of permanent and practical grain doors for cars which will do away with the great expense and labor now incurred by rail-roads in nailing up with lumber the inside of car doors for grain shipping and also avoid the damage now being done to the cars by the present practice. 6. The production of a grain door for cars which will greatly speed the process of unloading grain at elevators etc, and thereby increase the earning capacity of the cars thus employed. These purposes are attained in my invention by certain novel construction and combination of parts which will be hereinafter described and clain'ied.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1, represents a perspective view of my grain doors, open and swung back against the inner sides of the car. Fig. 2, represents a perspective view (from outside the car), of my grain doors shut ready to lock. Fig. 3, represents a plan View of the tongue portion of my hinge. Fig. I, reprel sents a perspective view of the tongue part. Fig. 5, represents a perspective View of the I plate and clips portion of my hinge. Fig. 6, i

represents my hinge pin or bolt with clips by 5 5 which it is attached to grain doors. Fig. 7, represents a door bumper. Fig. 8, represents a horizontal section through the door on line of the hinge.

I preferably make two of my grain doors ()0 for each car door way, so as to swing together in the center, their contiguous edges halved together when shut to prevent leakage at the joint, which in conjunction with the fastening bar i, forms practically a matched joint. I make each door of two thicknesses of suitable lumber with the grain of the wood in the two sides running at approximately right angles. If desired the inside of each door may be metal 'lined to other end formed into a round hammer 8o shaped head, provided with a bolt hole through its center, the head part fitting between the two lips'on the metal strip 1), and hinged thereto upon a bolt or rivet. Through the slit in the tongue piece I pass a metal pin, 0, each end of which I make a U shaped clip, in the sides of the clips I make holes through which I bolt or rivet them to the car door for which purpose I notch the door to fit the clips neatly, the space between the clips being just sufficient to allow the tongue piece to slide through freely. I make the inner part of the notch in the door V shaped to allow the tongue portion of the hinge the freest motion possible around the hinge pin 5 without leaving any opening for the grain to leak out of.

I bolt to each door a long and strong hook in such position that it will hook securely I back to a strong staple or eye provided there for 111 the car door-frame near its outer edge.

Near the point of the hook I attach a shackle made of several chain links termmatmg in a bolt by wlnch it is fastened to the grain door soas to hold the grain door solidly against the door frame when the grain doors are closed and the hook is driven through the eye. This arrangement enables one hook to From one side of 75 hold both sides of the door securely, and serve the triple purpose of a hook, a brace and a lock. Any wear on the shackles may be taken up by tightening the bur on the shackles bolt as desired. I latch the two doors together by means of the single latch lever g, which I bolt so as to swing freely to one door and fit snugly into the catch, h, on the other door. I provide the door having the outside projecting edge with an ordinary sliding bolt for fastening the said door by means of a hole provided therefor in the metal sill of the car door way. As may be readily seen these arrangements constitute powerful fastenings for such doors.

I make the doors sufliciently high above the grain line for safety, though they may be made any height which will permit them to freely swing out through the car door way. I make my doors preferably with a metal shoeon the bottom to prevent the bottom of the doors being injured to cause leaks.

In using my doors they are shut, the hooks are forced in the eye and catches respectively and the doors are secured. In unloading the long hooks are driven out of the eyes in the door frames, the lever is driven out of the catch provided therefor and the doors swing outward and open. The construction of the hinges permits the doors to swing around and fold against the inside of the car, or to swing through the doorway to a position against the outside of the car on one side and against the outside car door on the other side, out of theway, and without hindrance from obstructions, like pulleys on elevator platforms, so near to the sides of the car as to prevent the use of ordinary swinging doors.

The practical utility of my invention is at. once apparent to those familiar with the present status of grain doors for cars and the great expense incurred each year by railroads in boarding up the car doorways for each shipment of grain, and loss of temporary doors used therefor.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. Grain doors for cars consisting of two wooden doors, each provided with means of attaching same to car door frame-and permitting each door to swing freely through the doorway, either to a position against the inside of a car or to a position against the outside thereof, said doors halved together at point of contact with each other when closed and provided with means to resist pressure from grain in car, comprising detachable stays extending from the free edge of each door to the door jamb.

2. In grain doors for cars the combination of two wooden doors, means of attaching the doors to car door frame permitting the doors to swing freely around the door frame or to close tightly together, said means composed of a metal tongue piece transversely pivoted to a plate attached to car door-frame, said tongue piece provided with a longitudinal slit, through which slit a pin passes, each pin terminating in U shaped clips by which clips the pin is attached to car door in recesses provided therefor, the inner edge of which recesses are made V shaped, and means to resist pressure of grain in car and hold doors in position consisting of long heavy hooks each made with a shackle of chain links attached near the hook end, the shackle and the other end of the hook being bolted to car door, the hook end fitting into a screw eye provided therefor in door-frame.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM C. N. SMITH. ERASTUS ROADIFER.

WVitnesses as to IVilliam C. N. Smith:

CLARK A. PRINDLE, EDWIN S. RIPLEY. I/Vitnesses as to Erastus Roadifer:

H. H. ROADIFER, Tnos. ARTHUR. 

